Edwin Brooks
Encyclopedia
Edwin Brooks is a British
-born, Australia
-resident academic who has been a Member of Parliament
(MP) in England
and a local politician both in England and in Australia.
was spent in Singapore
, after which he went to St John's College
, Cambridge University. After an undergraduate degree he also took his PhD there. He became a Lecturer in Geography at Liverpool University in 1954.
member. At the 1964 general election
he was Labour candidate for the Bebington constituency
on the Wirral Peninsula
in Cheshire
, losing to future Chancellor of the Exchequer and Foreign Secretary Geoffrey Howe
.
when he beat Howe. In Parliament
he broke the Labour whip to support an amendment to the 1967 budget to relieve charities of Purchase Tax on goods they bought to further their objects; early the next year he supported amendments to soften the Commonwealth Immigrants Bill. He opposed the government's attempt to negotiate a settlement with Rhodesia
. He also wanted all hereditary peers removed from the House of Lords
, and called for a negotiated settlement to the Vietnam war
.
He held his seat only until 1970
when he was defeated, and went back to his old job at Liverpool University. Two years later he was promoted to Senior Lecturer and he was Dean of College Studies from 1975 to 1977.
, New South Wales
, and emigrated to Australia. From 1982 to 1988 he was Dean of Commerce of the merged Riverina-Murray Institute of Higher Education, part of the Charles Sturt University
. On retirement he was appointed Dean Emeritus.
He co-founded Wagga Ratepayers Association, and is active in civic life in the town. He was President of Wagga Wagga Chamber of Commerce from 1988 to 1990.
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
-born, Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
-resident academic who has been a Member of Parliament
Member of Parliament
A Member of Parliament is a representative of the voters to a :parliament. In many countries with bicameral parliaments, the term applies specifically to members of the lower house, as upper houses often have a different title, such as senate, and thus also have different titles for its members,...
(MP) in England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
and a local politician both in England and in Australia.
Earlier career
Brooks was born in South Wales and went to Barry Grammar School. His National ServiceNational service
National service is a common name for mandatory government service programmes . The term became common British usage during and for some years following the Second World War. Many young people spent one or more years in such programmes...
was spent in Singapore
Singapore
Singapore , officially the Republic of Singapore, is a Southeast Asian city-state off the southern tip of the Malay Peninsula, north of the equator. An island country made up of 63 islands, it is separated from Malaysia by the Straits of Johor to its north and from Indonesia's Riau Islands by the...
, after which he went to St John's College
St John's College, Cambridge
St John's College is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge. The college's alumni include nine Nobel Prize winners, six Prime Ministers, three archbishops, at least two princes, and three Saints....
, Cambridge University. After an undergraduate degree he also took his PhD there. He became a Lecturer in Geography at Liverpool University in 1954.
Politics
In 1958 Brooks was elected to Birkenhead County Borough Council as a Labour PartyLabour Party (UK)
The Labour Party is a centre-left democratic socialist party in the United Kingdom. It surpassed the Liberal Party in general elections during the early 1920s, forming minority governments under Ramsay MacDonald in 1924 and 1929-1931. The party was in a wartime coalition from 1940 to 1945, after...
member. At the 1964 general election
United Kingdom general election, 1964
The United Kingdom general election of 1964 was held on 15 October 1964, more than five years after the preceding election, and thirteen years after the Conservative Party had retaken power...
he was Labour candidate for the Bebington constituency
Bebington (UK Parliament constituency)
Bebington was a parliamentary constituency in the United Kingdom, which existed from 1950 to 1974. The constituency was centred on the town of Bebington on the Wirral Peninsula, England.-History:...
on the Wirral Peninsula
Wirral Peninsula
Wirral or the Wirral is a peninsula in North West England. It is bounded by three bodies of water: to the west by the River Dee, forming a boundary with Wales, to the east by the River Mersey and to the north by the Irish Sea. Both terms "Wirral" and "the Wirral" are used locally , although the...
in Cheshire
Cheshire
Cheshire is a ceremonial county in North West England. Cheshire's county town is the city of Chester, although its largest town is Warrington. Other major towns include Widnes, Congleton, Crewe, Ellesmere Port, Runcorn, Macclesfield, Winsford, Northwich, and Wilmslow...
, losing to future Chancellor of the Exchequer and Foreign Secretary Geoffrey Howe
Geoffrey Howe
Richard Edward Geoffrey Howe, Baron Howe of Aberavon, CH, QC, PC is a former British Conservative politician. He was Margaret Thatcher's longest-serving Cabinet minister, successively holding the posts of Chancellor of the Exchequer, Foreign Secretary, and finally Leader of the House of Commons...
.
Parliament
However, Brooks turned the tables in the 1966 general electionUnited Kingdom general election, 1966
The 1966 United Kingdom general election on 31 March 1966 was called by sitting Labour Prime Minister Harold Wilson. Wilson's decision to call an election turned on the fact that his government, elected a mere 17 months previously in 1964 had an unworkably small majority of only 4 MPs...
when he beat Howe. In Parliament
Parliament of the United Kingdom
The Parliament of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland is the supreme legislative body in the United Kingdom, British Crown dependencies and British overseas territories, located in London...
he broke the Labour whip to support an amendment to the 1967 budget to relieve charities of Purchase Tax on goods they bought to further their objects; early the next year he supported amendments to soften the Commonwealth Immigrants Bill. He opposed the government's attempt to negotiate a settlement with Rhodesia
Rhodesia
Rhodesia , officially the Republic of Rhodesia from 1970, was an unrecognised state located in southern Africa that existed between 1965 and 1979 following its Unilateral Declaration of Independence from the United Kingdom on 11 November 1965...
. He also wanted all hereditary peers removed from the House of Lords
House of Lords
The House of Lords is the upper house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. Like the House of Commons, it meets in the Palace of Westminster....
, and called for a negotiated settlement to the Vietnam war
Vietnam War
The Vietnam War was a Cold War-era military conflict that occurred in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia from 1 November 1955 to the fall of Saigon on 30 April 1975. This war followed the First Indochina War and was fought between North Vietnam, supported by its communist allies, and the government of...
.
He held his seat only until 1970
United Kingdom general election, 1970
The United Kingdom general election of 1970 was held on 18 June 1970, and resulted in a surprise victory for the Conservative Party under leader Edward Heath, who defeated the Labour Party under Harold Wilson. The election also saw the Liberal Party and its new leader Jeremy Thorpe lose half their...
when he was defeated, and went back to his old job at Liverpool University. Two years later he was promoted to Senior Lecturer and he was Dean of College Studies from 1975 to 1977.
Australia
In 1977 he was appointed Dean of Business and Liberal Studies at Riverina College of Advanced Education, Wagga WaggaWagga Wagga, New South Wales
Wagga Wagga is a city in New South Wales, Australia. Straddling the Murrumbidgee River, and with an urban population of 46,735 people, Wagga Wagga is the state's largest inland city, as well as an important agricultural, military, and transport hub of Australia...
, New South Wales
New South Wales
New South Wales is a state of :Australia, located in the east of the country. It is bordered by Queensland, Victoria and South Australia to the north, south and west respectively. To the east, the state is bordered by the Tasman Sea, which forms part of the Pacific Ocean. New South Wales...
, and emigrated to Australia. From 1982 to 1988 he was Dean of Commerce of the merged Riverina-Murray Institute of Higher Education, part of the Charles Sturt University
Charles Sturt University
Charles Sturt University is an Australian multi-campus university located in New South Wales, Victoria, and the Australian Capital Territory. It has campuses at Bathurst, Canberra, Albury-Wodonga, Dubbo, Goulburn, Orange, Wagga Wagga and Burlington, Ontario...
. On retirement he was appointed Dean Emeritus.
He co-founded Wagga Ratepayers Association, and is active in civic life in the town. He was President of Wagga Wagga Chamber of Commerce from 1988 to 1990.